Director of Programs
Deirdre Theriault
A Bit About Deirdre
Deirde received her BS in Animal Assisted Therapy from the University of CT in 2003, a degree in Nursing from Bridgeport Hospital School of Nursing in 2011, and in 2020 she began her career as a Recovery Support Specialist (RSS). Although she has spent most of her working life working as a staff, manager, and a nurse in group homes for individuals with Developmental Disabilities, but she did not find her true passion until she became an RSS and started at PFTL in March of 2020. She is passionate about working at Parent’s Foundation because she wants to help end the stigma that surrounds individuals with mental health diagnosis, and says it was important for her to work for an agency that treats the residents in a caring way with the dignity and respect they deserve.
Deirdre considers herself very lucky to work in the Recover and Enrichment program because she gets to spend her days facilitating groups, one-to-one activities, and outings in the community. Some of her favorite outings and groups include the hiking club, gardening, sewing, and SMART Recovery.
“I am proud to work with the residents to find and coordinate volunteer activities and it has been very exciting to developing new connections in the community. During the pandemic, I had to the opportunity to work one-on-one with the residents to teach them how to grocery shop online. This has been very fulfilling to see the individuals learn and grasp this new concept to adapt to the times. Finally, my proudest moment is getting certified in SMART Recovery so that we can offer it to the residents here. I am so honored to help support those on the difficult journey of recovery. It is great to see people making progress in developing better coping mechanisms in the challenges they face.”